LONDON — European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker sought to present a bright future for the European Union after the United Kingdom leaves in 2019, but warned that Britain "will regret" the move as much as the EU will, CNN reported.

In his annual state of the union address, Juncker repeatedly used the word "solidarity" in talking about the bloc and enumerated its economic achievements, saying that "the wind is back in Europe's sails." "March 29, 2019 -- that is the date when the United Kingdom will leave the European Union. This will be a very sad and tragic moment in our history. We will always regret this -- and I think that you will regret it as well soon, if I might say," Juncker told members of the European Parliament, including Brexit architect Nigel Farage.